Archive for June, 2009
Tracey’s Design Dilemma
Tracey’s ready to totally transform her bedroom. Here’s her letter:
Hi youngsters! I’m so excited we were able to get one of your spots this week and can’t wait to see your ideas! We’re looking to add some style to our boring bedroom. We’d like something modern & chic but comfortable & approachable. We like worldly aspects and something with a bit of fun (definitely no country or floral). We really like World Market and Pottery Barn. We definitely want to change the wall color. Because we live in Texas where it is HOT we would like to stay with an overhead fan (although not necessarily the one that’s there). The armoire can go or stay, and we are willing to paint/change hardware to update it. We are going to be purchasing a flat t.v. in the next couple of weeks, so that will go, along with the tv stand. I’ve had the idea to add either a comfy chair or a vanity (or cute small desk with a mirror mounted in front of it) in the room somewhere but am in no way tied to that idea. We are on a bit of budget, as well, so we are looking for moderately priced furniture. One last thing – we have two cats, so bedspreads that are primarily a dark color are a bit of a pain. Thanks so much, and I can’t wait to see what you guys come up with! -Tracey
This space is primed for a major makeover. Here’s the plan:
And now for the mood board breakdown.
Read the rest of this entry »
Fresh Fruit
Remember when we House Crashed Katie over at Bower Power? Well we brought her a set of botanicals from our shop as a token of our appreciation, and she ended up ripping a few pages out of her Hooker Book (an old book of fruit and botanical drawings that she found at Goodwill) and sending them home with us in return. Isn’t she sweet? And now that we’ve finally gotten around to a little project with our lovely courtesy-of-Katie botanicals, we’re here to share the goods.
We decided we had framed art aplenty around here, and immediately started to brainstorm other ways to use the prints. Thinking outside the frame if you will. My love of white ceramics came into play when I was peering into our Decor Store at a few white ceramic cups and thought: wouldn’t they look cute with a bit of fruit on the front? I grabbed the two ceramic containers from the cabinet and found the third one full of ivy in our bedroom windowsill. Here they are before “Project Produce.”
And here are our torn out Hooker Book pages courtesy of Katie before the ol’ snip fest. We just cut out some of the smaller fruit drawings…
… and found some old Mod Podge from Michael’s in my craft drawer. Then I grabbed a small paint brush and coated each fruity cutout with a bit of Mod Podge and stuck them to each ceramic cup for a cheerful and fresh little finished product (note: when using Mod Podge you can coat the back of the thing-to-be-stuck and then coat the front of it once it’s in place for a more durable “seal” that’s long-lasting and invisible).
We also love how versatile the little cups really are. They can hold flowers, office supplies, plants, and more. Don’t they look cute all lined up by the window?
We loved them en masse, so they actually ended up on my desk where the pencils and eye glasses come in handy all the time. And the ivy provides fresh clean air for me as I blog the day away. Total project cost: $0.00. Sweet.
And since there were also larger botanicals that remained, we decided to decoupage two larger drawings onto small dessert plates that can be hung on the wall or even leaned on the floating shelves in the dining room for a bit of sweet food-related fun. Here they are before Mod Podge. Isn’t it amazing what an old Goodwill book can become?
How about you guys. Have you whipped up any botanical masterpieces of your own as of late? Scored anything amazing at Goodwill? Repurposed something you had around the house in a new way? Do tell.
Fab Freebie: Goodie Bags
***This giveaway is no longer accepting entries***
You probably remember us gushing about Envirosax a couple of weeks ago. Who could forget those stylish reusable fabric bags that Sherry fell in love with thanks to their large capacity, compact storage (they fold up to be the size of a cell phone), comfortable handles and (of course) fun designs.
Well, you weren’t the only ones who heard us proclaim our undying admiration for these eco-chic bags. The wonderful people over at Envirosax spotted our love-fest and offered up a giveaway for some lucky YHL readers. Score!
So now you all have a chance to win your very own pouch of Envirosax. A pouch is a glove-compartment-sized pack of 5 coordinating bags, making it even easier (and more fashionable) to remember your reusable bags every time you head out to the store. And of course you can split them up and pop a few in your purse, murse (man purse) or gym bag and even toss a few in your car so you’ll never be without.
- PRIZE: A 5-bag pouch of Envirosax, any design from their graphic series (a $38 value)
- TO ENTER: Comment on this post with “I WANT SAX” (or “BAG ME” if the alternative is a bit too PG-13 for your tastes) and…
- BONUS QUESTION: Pop over to Envirosax.com and tell us which design fits your personality or aesthetic best (fellas, might I suggest the Oxford series?)
- GIVEAWAY CLOSES: Wednesday, June 24, 2009 at 8pm EST
- NUMBER OF WINNERS: Three lucky lads or ladies
- ELIGIBILITY: Prizes can be shipped to the US and Canada
- THE USUAL STUFF: One entry per e-mail address is permitted. The winner will be selected using random.org and announced on Thursday. Good luck!
More info about our freebies is available on our Giveaway FAQs page. Images courtesy of Envirosax.
